F1 Lead The Way....Again.

RB, F1, AGP.

    Formula One on a whole is such a progressive, always evolving entity. To be considered the pinnacle of motorsport necessitates that it remains fluid, constantly reinventing, pushing the envelope of technology to push the proverbial bar even higher. Same goes for the teams themselves. Even if they currently have the fastest, strongest package, if they're not stretching the development elastic as it were, instead blissfully resting on their laurels, then they're going backwards. Within every set of new F1 regulations, the teams inevitably close the gap between the frontrunners and the also rans. Hence F1 has a new set of regulations every few years or so. 2026 sees the start of another set. 
    The new regulations announced at the recent Canadian GP are only outlined at the moment and will be ratified in due course, so we won't go into them just yet. There is however one element that we find encouraging. The power units will have increased hybridisation with power derived from basically a 50-50 balance between combustion engine and battery power. The encouraging part is the use of fully carbon neutral, sustainable fuels for the combustion engine. One of the methods F1 is using to create the fuel is extracting carbon directly from the atmosphere. They could very well be also extracting it from non-food biomass or through the electrolysis of water. Sure the cars will still release carbon back out through their exhausts, but no more than what they're extracting, hence the neutral part of the equation. 
    What does this mean for the motor industry? More importantly, how long will it take the motor industry to catch up? We have said many times that motor vehicle manufacturers need to take their cues from F1. In fact, we believe that the Mercedes F1 team drove their fleet of transporters all over Europe last season already using sustainable fuels. Which got us contemplating what technological innovations F1 have pioneered over the years. Just think power steering, traction control, anti-lock brakes, semi automatic gearboxes, paddle shift gear changes with virtually seamless shift, to name a few. A lot of these features are now considered the bare minimum standard on road cars. When kinetic energy recovery systems came around some 15 years ago, it was the Williams team that acquired the contract to kit government buses out with the system. Or the top quality ventilators mass produced in record time by all the teams at the height of the covid pandemic when grand prix racing was placed on involuntary hiatus. You want something done, simply task F1 to devise a solution.
    With various authorities pushing electric vehicles at the moment, aren't they just a transitional form of private conveyance because they're seen to be green and just the flavour of the month? Their resale value is questionable and insurance companies often are writing them off all too easily after a collision as all their worth is in the battery. In a country as large as Australia for instance, infrastructure is still lacking. Why is the development of fully carbon neutral, sustainable fuels not accelerated so it can enter the domestic motor vehicle market? The motor industry would do well to follow F1's cue.

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